Post on 20-Jul-2020
Reducing Health Care Expenditures by Investing Early
Colorado Commission on Affordable Health Care
April 11, 2016
Who We Are
The Colorado Children’s Campaign is a nonprofit, nonpartisan advocacy organization committed since 1985 to ensuring every chance for every child in Colorado. We champion policies and programs in child health, early childhood and K-12 education.
Why Must We Start Early?• Prenatal to age 8 is a critical time for kids
• Strong link between mental and physical health and school readiness, academic success and long-term health and life outcomes
• Cost savings occur in the future
• The bottom line:
Contain costs by ensuring children
grow up to be healthy adults.
“It is easier [and cheaper] to build strong children than to repair broken men.”
-Frederick Douglass
Pay A Little Now or A Lot Later
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Number of Risk Factors
Childhood Adversity and Developmental Delays
• Nearly half of U.S. kids are exposed to traumatic social or family experiences during childhood.
• Children who experience significant adversity early face long-term challenges.
Early Experiences Shape Development
and Lifelong Health
Recommendations
1. Invest in Programs to Prevent Unintended
Pregnancies, Especially among Teens (ROI $1:$2-6)
In 2014, the Colorado Department of Public Health’s family planning program spent an average of $404 per patient for a family planning visit. The average Medicaid birth costs more than $11,500 per woman.
2. Ensure ALL women in Colorado have
access to prenatal care (ROI $1:$2.5-3)
Including dental care, vaccines and tobacco cessation tools
3. Advance Childhood Vaccines ROI ($1: $3-10)
In 2013, vaccination prevented nearly 31,000 cases of vaccine-preventable disease in Colorado children and over $440 million in hospitalization charges.
4. Ensure Access to Developmental
Screening and Services (ROI varies)• Less than half of Colorado kids under 6
received a screening in 2011-2012, less than 11% of children who fail a screening receive services
• Services can improve a child’s development
• Need for a statewide screening, referral and care coordination model and statewide navigation system to connect caregivers, families and providers to referral and mental health resources
• Health system structure should encourage integration of mental health and primary care
5. Ensure access to Childhood Mental
Health Services (ROI varies)
• Ensure parents, health and child care providers have access to early childhood mental health services
• Mitigating toxic stress can reduce long-term effects of ACEs.
• 4+ ACEs correlate with:• 4-12x increase in alcoholism and drug use• 4-12x increase in depression• 2-4x increase in smoking• 1.4-1.6x increase in obesity• Increased probability of heart disease,
diabetes, STDs
6. Ensure Access to Nurse-Family Visiting
(ROI $1:$2-6)
• Improves child health and development, school-readiness and family economic sufficiency
• Results:– 50% reduction in domestic violence– 90% immunization rate by age 2– 21% reduction in smoking during
pregnancy– 32% reduction in alcohol use during
pregnancy– 15 years later: reduced criminal activity
by mother & child, improved school success, fewer months on welfare, reductions in child abuse and neglect
7. Ensure Access to Quality Childcare
ages 0-3 (ROI varies)
• Increases maternal employment and earnings
• Can improve math and reading skills and high school graduation rates
• Can improve health
8. Universal Access to Quality Preschool
(ROI $1: $4-13)
• Less than half of Colorado 3 and 4 year olds were enrolled in preschool in 2011-2013
• Colorado Preschool Program availability capped due to funding
• Preschool increases earnings, reduces the need for repeated grades, reduces involvement with criminal justice system, and improves physical and behavioral health.
Erin Miller, VP Health Initiatives
(303) 620-4560
erin@coloradokids.org
Bill Jaeger, VP Early Childhood Initiatives
(720) 552-0002
bill@coloradokids.org
Resources